While the data examined in this publication shows little difference in participation rates of those with disabilities and those without, it should be noted there has been no attempt to measure the quality of the social participation. There remains the issue that merely attending a social event does not have the same level of social interaction for all. For example, this year one cinema in NSW acquired new technology to aid people with hearing impairment, which allows patrons to privately view captions with the latest release movies. This is not an area addressed in ABS social surveys.

Examination of the data shows that people with profound or severe core activity limitations are less likely to have participated in a number of activities compared to people without disabilities or with disabilities, who are less impaired. However, this is not the only dimension of participation data that is important. People who have psychological and /or intellectual disabilities were significantly less likely to participate in a number of social activities than those with other types of disabilities.